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Update preface.

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This commit is contained in:
Peter Eisentraut
2003-09-08 23:02:28 +00:00
parent e54965c0f8
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$Header: /cvsroot/pgsql/doc/src/sgml/intro.sgml,v 1.20 2002/10/24 17:48:54 petere Exp $
$Header: /cvsroot/pgsql/doc/src/sgml/intro.sgml,v 1.21 2003/09/08 23:02:28 petere Exp $
-->
<sect1 id="intro-whatis">
<title> What is <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>?</title>
<preface id="preface">
<title>Preface</title>
<para>
<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> is an object-relational
database management system (<acronym>ORDBMS</acronym>) based on
<ulink url="http://s2k-ftp.CS.Berkeley.EDU:8000/postgres/postgres.html">
<productname>POSTGRES, Version 4.2</productname></ulink>,
developed at the University of California at Berkeley Computer
Science Department. The <productname>POSTGRES</productname>
project, led by Professor Michael Stonebraker, was sponsored by
the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
(<acronym>DARPA</acronym>), the Army Research Office
(<acronym>ARO</acronym>), the National Science Foundation
(<acronym>NSF</acronym>), and ESL, Inc.
</para>
<para>
This book is the official documentation of PostgreSQL. It is being
written by the PostgreSQL developers and other volunteers in
parallel to the development of the PostgreSQL software. It
describes all the functionality that the current version of
PostgreSQL officially supports.
</para>
<para>
<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> is an open-source descendant of
this original Berkeley code. It provides SQL92/SQL99 language support
and other modern features.
</para>
<para>
To make the large amount of information about PostgreSQL manageable,
this book has been organized in several parts. Each part is
targeted at a different class of users, or at users in different
stages of their PostgreSQL experience:
<para>
<productname>POSTGRES</productname> pioneered many of the
object-relational concepts now becoming available in some commercial
databases.
Traditional relational database management systems
(<acronym>RDBMS</acronym>) support a data model consisting of a collection
of named relations, containing attributes of a specific
type. In current commercial systems, possible types
include floating point numbers, integers, character
strings, money, and dates. It is commonly recognized
that this model is inadequate for future data-processing applications.
The relational model successfully replaced previous
models in part because of its <quote>Spartan simplicity</quote>.
However, this simplicity makes the
implementation of certain applications very difficult.
<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> offers substantial additional
power by incorporating the following additional
concepts in such a way that users can easily
extend the system:
<itemizedlist>
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="tutorial"> is an informal introduction for new users.
</para>
</listitem>
<itemizedlist spacing="compact">
<listitem>
<simpara>inheritance</>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>data types</>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>functions</simpara>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
</para>
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="sql"> documents the <acronym>SQL</acronym> query
language environment, including data types and functions, as well
as user-level performance tuning. Every
<productname>PostgreSQL</> user should read this.
</para>
</listitem>
<para>
Other features provide additional power and flexibility:
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="admin"> describes the installation and
administration of the server. Everyone that runs a PostgreSQL
server, be it for private use or for others, should read this
part.
</para>
</listitem>
<itemizedlist spacing="compact">
<listitem>
<simpara>constraints</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>triggers</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>rules</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>transactional integrity</simpara>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
</para>
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="client-interfaces"> describes the programming
interfaces for PostgreSQL client programs.
</para>
</listitem>
<para>
These features put <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> into the
category of databases referred to as
<firstterm>object-relational</firstterm>. Note that this is distinct
from those referred to as <firstterm>object-oriented</firstterm>,
which in general are not as well suited to supporting
traditional relational database languages.
So, although <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> has some
object-oriented features, it is firmly in the relational database
world. In fact, some commercial databases have recently
incorporated features pioneered by <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>.
</para>
</sect1>
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="server-programming"> contains information for
advanced users about the extensibility capabilities of the
server. Topics are, for instance, user-defined data types and
functions.
</para>
</listitem>
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sgml-shorttag:t
sgml-minimize-attributes:nil
sgml-always-quote-attributes:t
sgml-indent-step:1
sgml-indent-data:t
sgml-parent-document:nil
sgml-default-dtd-file:"./reference.ced"
sgml-exposed-tags:nil
sgml-local-catalogs:("/usr/lib/sgml/catalog")
sgml-local-ecat-files:nil
End:
-->
<listitem>
<para>
<xref linkend="reference"> contains information about the syntax
of SQL commands, client and server programs. This part supports
the other parts with structured information sorted by command or
program.
</para>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
</para>
<sect1 id="intro-whatis">
<title> What is <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>?</title>
<para>
<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> is an object-relational
database management system (<acronym>ORDBMS</acronym>) based on
<ulink url="http://s2k-ftp.CS.Berkeley.EDU:8000/postgres/postgres.html">
<productname>POSTGRES, Version 4.2</productname></ulink>, developed
at the University of California at Berkeley Computer Science
Department. POSTGRES pioneered many concepts that only became
available in some commercial database systems much later.
</para>
<para>
<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> is an open-source descendant
of this original Berkeley code. It supports SQL92 and SQL99 and
offers many modern features:
<itemizedlist spacing="compact">
<listitem>
<simpara>complex queries</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>foreign keys</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>triggers</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>views</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>transactional integrity</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>multiversion concurrency control</simpara>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
Also, PostgreSQL can be extended by the user in many ways, for
example by adding new
<itemizedlist spacing="compact">
<listitem>
<simpara>data types</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>functions</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>operators</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>aggregate functions</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>index methods</simpara>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<simpara>procedural languages</simpara>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
</para>
<para>
And because of the liberal license, PostgreSQL can be used,
modified, and distributed by everyone free of charge for any
purpose, be it private, commercial, or academic.
</para>
</sect1>
&history;
&notation;
&info;
&problems;
</preface>